Selective yarn changing device for circular knitting machines

ABSTRACT

A yarn changer, especially for use at each feed of a multifeed circular ladies hosiery machine, having a yarn-feeding disc with a plurality of circularly spaced yarn-feeding holes therein with the disc being angularly oscillatable to selectively feed each of a like plurality of yarns to the needles. In each yarn changer the disc is mounted at one end of a rotatable rod upon the other end of which is mounted a spur gear and a ring gear is provided on the machine in mesh with the spur gears of the yarn changers at each of the feeds to commonly turn all the discs to commonly change the yarns being fed at all of the feeds of the machine.

United States Patent [72] Inventor Gianni Conti F irenze, Italy [21] Appl. No, 820,158 [22] Filed Apr. 29, 1969 [45] Patented Apr. 13, 1971 [73] Assignee G. Billi & C. S. P. A.

Florence, Italy [32] Priority May 3, 1968 [33] Italy [31] 4548/68 [54] SELECTIVE YARN CHANGING DEVICE FOR CIRCULAR KNI'I'IING MACHINES 6 Claims, 4 Drawing Figs.

[52] U.S.Cl 66/111, 66/ 1 38 [51] Int. Cl D04b15/0 D04b 15/58 [50] Field of Search 66/135, 137,139;66/136,I11, 125,131,133, 138,140

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 621,681 3/1899 Johns 66/111 250,505 12/1881 Dow 66/140 1,827,660 10/1931 Kent 66/131 1,845,669 2/1932 Lawson 66/135(X) 1,848,477 3/1932 Hartranft... 66/139(X) 2,002,417 5/1935 Simpson 66/137 2,911,806 11/1959 Macon 66/111(X) Primary Examiner-Robert R. Mackey Attorney-Necho and Kimmelman ABSTRACT: A yam changer, especially for use at each feed of a multifeed circular ladies hosiery machine, having a yamfeeding disc with a plurality of circularly spaced yam-feeding holes therein with the disc being angularly oscillatable to selectively feed each of a like plurality of yarns to the needles. In each yarn changer the disc is mounted at one end of a rotatable rod upon the other end of which is mounted a spur gear and a ring gear is provided on the machine in mesh with the spur gears of the yarn changers at each of the feeds to commonly turn all the discs to commonly change the yarns being fed at all of the feeds of the machine.

Patented April 13, 1971 INVENTOR GIANNI CONTI ATTORNEYS Maw-M SELECTWE YARN CHANGING DEVICE FOR CIRCULAR KNITTING MACHINES THE lNVENTlON The present invention relates generally to the art of knitting and more particularly to an improvement in yarn changers for knitting machines.

in the art of multifeed circular knitting machines upon which ladies hosiery is made, particularly in those machines of the rotating cylinder type, it is generally desirable to increase the number of feeds thereon, without, however, changing the size of the needle cylinder, in order that the time required to knit the hosiery may be accordingly decreased to thus provide a more economical operation. However, with the increase in the number of feeds and with the necessary duplication of certain components of the machine, such as the yarn changers, at the additional feeds, the problem of adequate space for the increased number of such components, the problem of increased controls therefor and the problem of space for the increased controls becomes increasingly difficult and, as a result thereof, it becomes desirable to make a change in the components themselves, especially for use upon multifeed ladies hosiery machines.

Heretofore, the yarn changers generally used at each of the feeds of hosiery machines comprise, a plurality of individually movable side-by-side yarn-feeding guides pivotally mounted upon a common horizontally mounted pin in a housing for the guides along with some type of individual control to selectively place the guides at each feed into and out of yarn feeding position. The aforesaid type of yarn changers and their controls required a certain amount of space and, since the size of the needle cylinder does not change in the multifeed machines, the space adjacent thereto remains the same and is insufficient to adequately accommodate the aforesaid type of yarn changers and the controls therefor when the number of feeds on the machines are relatively large for the diameter thereof.

it is the principal object of the present invention to provide a yarn changer for a knitting machine wherein each of a plurality of yarns may be selectively fed to the needles of the machine by means of a single member.

It is also an object of the present invention to provide a yarn changer for a knitting machine which has an angularly oscil latable member having a plurality of circularly spaced yarnfeeding apertures therein and has means to oscillate said member to selectively place said apertures in yam-feeding position relative to the needles of the machine.

it is a further object of the present invention to provide yarn changers for each feed of a multifeed circular knitting machine wherein each of plurality of yarns may be selectively fed to the needles of said machine by a single member at each of said feeds and wherein the yarn feeding members of all of said yarn changers are commonly controlled to change the yarns fed thereby.

The several objects and advantages of the present invention will be readily apparent from the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment thereof to be read in connection with the accompanying drawings showing the same and from the appended claims.

IN THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view of a multifeed circular knitting machine in which eight knitting feeds or stations are indicated and in which the yarn changer of the present invention is shown at one of the feeds of the machine.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of a portion of FIG. 1 showing the present yarn changer and the needle circle of the knitting machine.

MG. 3 is a side elevational view of the components shown in FIG. 2 as taken on line Ill-III thereof.

FlG. d is a front elevational view of the components shown in HG. 3 as taken on line lV-IV thereof.

In the circular knitting machine shown in FIG. 1, which may be of the rotating cylinder type used for the manufacture of ladies hosiery, the needle circle thereof is indicated at l and is composed of a plurality of side-by-side vertically reciprocating latch needles indicated at A in FIGS. 2, 3, and 4.

While the number of feeds may vary with individual types of hosiery machines, the present machine, shown in FIG. 1. is provided with eight knitting feeds or stations indicated at X! through X8, these feeds being equally angularly spaced around the needle circle 1. The yarn changer of the present invention, duplicates of which are used at each of the feeds of the machine, is shown only at the feed XI and it is supported upon a stationary annularly shaped bed 3 forming part of the machine and surrounding the needle circle 1. It will be understood that the yarn changers of the remaining feeds are similarly supported upon the bed 3.

Each of the present yarn changers is provided with an angularly oscillatable yarn feeding disc 5 having a plurality of preferably equally circularly spaced axially extending apertures extending therethrough adjacent the periphery thereof, and while four such apertures are provided in the present disc 5, as indicated at 5A, it will be understood that there may be a larger or a smaller number thereof. The yarns, indicated at F, extend from their cones through suitable apertures in a yarn bracket 7 to the individual ones of the apertures 5A in the disc 5, as shown in FIG. 4, one of the yarns being in position to be fed to the passing needles A at a level below the knitting path or trajectory of their hooks through the lowermost aperture SAX while the other of said yarns extend through the disc 5 at a level above the knitting path of the hooks of needles A and continue on to the clamp and cutter of the machine. The apertures of bracket 7 may have porcelain guides therein and the apertures 5A of the disc 5 may have hardened tubes therein to resist the wear of the yarns moving therethrough. The disc 5 is positioned so that the feeding side thereof is relatively close to the needles in generally tangential relation to the needle circle and its peripheral surface, suitably hardened, acts as a latch opener for partially opened latches regardless of the angular position of the disc 5. While the outline of the yam-feeding member 5 is shown as being circular, it may be of other configuration so long as the sides thereof function as a latch opener and will not harm the latches of bare needles passing thereby. it may be noted here that each of the yam-feeding apertures 5A occupies the identical relation to the knitting wave when it is in feeding position so that regardless of the yarn being fed, it occupies the same position relative to the needle hooks taking the same. i

The disc 5 is secured to one end of a radially extending horizontally disposed rod 9 which is rotatably journaled in and extends lengthwise through a suitable housing 11, the other end of the rod 9 projecting from the housing 11 and having a spur gear 13 secured thereon. Angular movement of the gear l3 and rod 9 causes corresponding angular movement of the disc 5. The housing 11 provides a support for the yarn bracket 7 and is, in turn, supported on and suitably secured to the bed 3 of the machine. Meshing with the gear 13 (and with the similar gears 13 of the yarn changers disposed at the other feeds X2 through X8) to oscillate the same is a ring gear 15 arranged to be rotatably journaled in a suitable annular groove in the bed 3 of the machine. The gear i5 is to be oscillated and to this end it is moved in counterclockwise direction, FIG. 1, by the pulling action of a rod or cable 17 operatively related to the ring gear 115 and to the pattern drum of the machine. The gear ring 15 is caused to be moved in clockwise direction, when permitted to do so by the action of the pattern drum on the cable 17, by a tensioned spring 13A suitably anchored to the gear 115 and to the bed 3 of the machine.

It is preferred that the oscillation or reciprocation of the disc 5 be the minimum necessary for the required yarn selections to be presented to the needles in order to avoid unnecessary twisting of the yarns and in the present instance, with four yarn feeding apertures 5A, a movement of 270 in each direction (which may be at a time), will present each of the yarns in turn to the needles. Altemately, the pattern drum and the yarn disposition in the apertures 5A may be set up so that the discs 5 are oscillated through lesser distances for the feeding of the yarns. The number of degrees through which the disc 5 is oscillated will depend upon the height of the successive cams on the pattern drum which pull the cable 17 to turn the gear in one direction and which, in their absence, also determine the extent to which the spring 13A is permitted to turn the gear 15 in the opposite direction.

It may be desirable to have the same kind of yarns in two or more of the apertures 5A of the discs at certain of the feeds only so that even though such discs 5 are turned to present a different aperture 5A to the needles, still the same kind of yarn would continue to be fed thereto.

It may be noted that the housing 11 of the plurality of yarn changers are spaced radially outwardly from the needle circle 1 where there is sufficient room therefor and that only the relatively small discs 5 are disposed adjacent to the needle circle l where space is at a premium in multifeed hosiery machines.

I claim:

I. A yam changer for use at each feed of a multifeed latch needle circular knitting machine having a needle cylinder for the selective feeding of each of a plurality of yarns to the circle of needles of said machine, each said yarn changer having a rotary yarn feeding member adapted to be intennittently turned to a plurality of positions about a generally horizontal axis extending radially of said needle cylinder and having a plurality of spaced yarn feeding apertures extending therethrough and arranged in a circular path about the said axis, said circular path being positioned in a plane normal to said axis, said member being disposed outside the circle of needles in such manner that the said intermittent positioning thereof serves to place each of its said apertures respectively into feeding position below the level of the knitting trajectory of the hooks of said needles wherein yarn passing therethrough is fed directly to the needles of said circle thereof, and also serves to place the corresponding reminder of its said apertures into nonfeeding positions above the level of the knitting trajectory of the hooks of said needles wherein yarns passing therethrough are adapted to extend above and across the needles of said circle thereof in nonfeeding relation thereto. and means to so intermittently turn said rotary yarn feeding members simultaneously.

2. A yarn changer as in claim 1 wherein each said member is disc shaped.

3. A yarn changer as in claim 2, wherein each said disc shaped member is positioned tangentially of, and adjacent to, the trajectory of said circle of needles in such manner as to also function as a latch opener for said needles in each of its said wherein each said yarn changes includes.

4. A yarn changer as in claim 1 wherein each said yarn changes includes a rotatable rod and a spur gear, said spur gear being affixed to one end of said rod and said yam-feeding member being affixed to the other end thereof, the said means acting to turn said spur gears.

5. The said rod of each of said yarn changers extends radially of said needle cylinder at each of said feeds and wherein said means is a ring gear encircling said needle cylinder, the said ring gear meshing with the said spur gears of said yarn changers at each of said feeds.

6. A yarn changer as in claim 5 wherein said ring gear is oscillatably mounted and wherein said knitting machine is provided with pattern controlled means to oscillate said ring gear. 

1. A yarn changer for use at each feed of a multifeed latch needle circular knitting machine having a needle cylinder for the selective feeding of each of a plurality of yarns to the circle of needles of said machine, each said yarn changer having a rotary yarn feeding member adapted to be intermittently turned to a plurality of positions about a generally horizontal axis extending radially of said needle cylinder and having a plurality of spaced yarn feeding apertures extending therethrough and arranged in a circular path about the said axis, said circular path being positioned in a plane normal to said axis, said member being disposed outside the circle of needles in such manner that the said intermittent positioning thereof serves to place each of its said apertures respectively into feeding position below the level of the knitting trajectory of the hooks of said needles wherein yarn passing therethrough is fed directly to the needles of said circle thereof, and also serves to place the corresponding reminder of its said apertures into nonfeeding positions above the level of the knitting trajectory of the hooks of said needles wherein yarns passing therethrough are adapted to extend above and across the needles of said circle thereof in nonfeeding relation thereto, and means to so intermittently turn said rotary yarn feeding members simultanEously.
 2. A yarn changer as in claim 1 wherein each said member is disc shaped.
 3. A yarn changer as in claim 2, wherein each said disc shaped member is positioned tangentially of, and adjacent to, the trajectory of said circle of needles in such manner as to also function as a latch opener for said needles in each of its said wherein each said yarn changes includes.
 4. A yarn changer as in claim 1 wherein each said yarn changes includes a rotatable rod and a spur gear, said spur gear being affixed to one end of said rod and said yarn-feeding member being affixed to the other end thereof, the said means acting to turn said spur gears.
 5. The said rod of each of said yarn changers extends radially of said needle cylinder at each of said feeds and wherein said means is a ring gear encircling said needle cylinder, the said ring gear meshing with the said spur gears of said yarn changers at each of said feeds.
 6. A yarn changer as in claim 5 wherein said ring gear is oscillatably mounted and wherein said knitting machine is provided with pattern controlled means to oscillate said ring gear. 